You don't have to be a steward all your life, you know.  You can be the boss.  You can call the shots someday.  You can be the manager of a restaurant.  Before we delve into the job of a restaurant manager, you need to ask yourself this, "Am I interested in restaurant management?"  If you are, then you should know that the job is not easy but it will definitely keep you on your toes – figuratively and literally.  Restaurant manager jobs are everywhere; but like a delicious bucket of popcorn, they can be easily gobbled up.  These jobs are diverse, but they are all challenging.

Restaurant management needs people who possess excellent business savvy, great administrative skills and boundless energy.  Managers, regardless of what they manage, are leaders but they are also followers.  They are a lot of things.  They are public relations, quality control and human resource experts.  They need to possess all the qualities of a good manager in order to achieve two goals: to make sure that the restaurant operates smoothly and to ensure that the restaurant makes money.

Restaurant Manager Job Duties

The restaurant manager duties include a wide array of activities.  One minute, he could be creating the budget, the next minute he could be planning the staff schedule.  He could even fill in for absent waiters, hosts or kitchen staff.  Yes, you can even find the restaurant manager in the kitchen, dutifully scraping carrots if he has to.  The most common duties of this manager, however, include the following:

• Coordinating with the executive chef in order to set menu items and determine correct pricing
• Managing employees and relating to customers
• Resolving staff issues
• Motivating and managing employees
• Training prospective employees
• Determining inventory and ordering supplies
• Marketing the restaurant
• Ensuring restaurant compliance with laws and health codes

Do You Have What It Takes to Become a Manager?

There are some skills that you have to possess in order to become an effective and efficient restaurant manager.  Perhaps, you might want to check them out and assess yourself.  Do you have these qualities?  Perhaps, if you feel that you are lacking in one skill or another, you might want to start developing these skills.  So, what are these essential skills?

1. Conversational skills and social intelligence.  As a manager, you will have to deal with all kinds of people.  You will have to mediate between feuding employees, soothe irate customer and represent the restaurant.  You need to have great conversational skills aside from social intelligence.
2. Organizational skills.  You need to be able to multitask.  You will be dealing with all sorts of operational issues.  You will be juggling several tasks at one time and you need to be able to do this efficiently.  Your restaurant needs to operate like a well-oiled machine and it is up to you to do this.
3. Decision-making skills.  You need to be able to think fast because there will be times when you will be required to do so.  You may be required to do a menu change when the need arises.  You have to make quick but practical decisions.
4. Business savvy.  You are the captain of the ship, so to speak.  The restaurant's success largely depends on you and on how you make decisions and handle the operations.  You will be performing administrative and routine tasks on a daily basis.

A restaurant management job is not easy, but if you possess all the skills necessary for the job, there is no reason why you can't be a manager someday.